Laseratum

The Roman laser flavouring of Apicius: asafoetida pounded with pepper, parsley, and dried mint and loosened with honey, vinegar, and broth into a sharp, savoury sauce for meat and vegetables

Origin: Rome, Roman Empire

From the journey of Asafoetida.

Laseratum is what the Roman cook made from laser before it went into a dish, and Apicius gives it in two forms. In Joseph Vehling's translation: 'Laser (which is also called laserpitium by the Romans, while the Greeks call it silphion) from Cyrene or from Parthia is dissolved in lukewarm moderately acid broth; or pepper, parsley, dry mint, laser root, honey, vinegar and broth' are ground together. The first is a simple solution of the resin; the second is a sauce in its own right, and it is the one given here. The recipe is a small document of Rome's supply problem. Apicius allows laser 'from Cyrene or from Parthia' because by the time the collection was put together the silphion of Cyrene had gone, and the laser of Parthia, the Persian resin that is generally identified as asafoetida, had taken its place. Pliny, writing in 77 CE, records the change and complains that the Persian kind was 'much inferior' and often adulterated. Use it as the Romans did, as a dressing for cold roast or boiled meat, for poached chicken, or for vegetables; Apicius adds 'silphium' now and then to cucumbers dressed with pepper, honey, broth, and vinegar, and this sauce does the same job. The sweet, sharp, and savoury balance is entirely Roman, and the asafoetida, cooked by nothing but the acid of the vinegar, keeps its oniony edge.

Ingredients

1 tsp black peppercorns
10 g flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tsp dried mint
0.25 tsp pure asafoetida powder, or 0.5 tsp compounded asafoetida
1 tbsp honey
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp fish sauce (the Roman liquamen)
3 tbsp light chicken or vegetable stock, cooled

Method

Crush the peppercorns finely in a mortar.
Add the parsley and dried mint and pound to a rough green paste.
Dissolve the asafoetida in the vinegar, then work it into the paste with the honey.
Loosen the sauce with the fish sauce and stock, taste, and adjust the balance with a little more honey or vinegar. It should be sharp, sweet, and savoury at once.
Spoon it over cold roast meat, poached chicken, boiled eggs, or sliced cucumbers, or serve it alongside in a small bowl.

Notes

Apicius's simpler form of laseratum is just the resin dissolved in a little warm, slightly acid broth: a quarter of a teaspoon of asafoetida stirred into four tablespoons of stock sharpened with a teaspoon of vinegar, used to season a dish as it cooks. Compounded asafoetida usually contains wheat flour; buy pure resin if you need the sauce to be gluten-free.

The Gastrographer

Name: Laseratum
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Roman Empire
Ingredients: 1 tsp black peppercorns; 10 g flat-leaf parsley leaves; 1 tsp dried mint; 0.25 tsp pure asafoetida powder, or 0.5 tsp compounded asafoetida; 1 tbsp honey; 3 tbsp red wine vinegar; 1 tbsp fish sauce (the Roman liquamen); 3 tbsp light chicken or vegetable stock, cooled

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control